Nashville's Sullivan family has won several video contests and garnered $30,000 in prize money. Joining dad Peter and mom Christie in their garage studio are sons Elijah, left, and Timothy and daughter Caeley, right. / Steven S. Harman / The Tennessean

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The Tennessean

The Nashville stay-at-home dad has directed his wife and three children in several video contest entries, winning many of the competitions and amassing $30,000 in prize money. The family’s most recent win is for "Pour One Out," which features a rap about his soda addiction.

The first-place award came with $1,000 from the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The nonprofit health advocacy organization sponsored the contest to increase awareness about the consequences of consuming sugary drinks.

Even though Sullivan drank the diet versions, he was chugging down a two-liter bottle every day.

“I was a full-blown soda addict,” he said. “I would drink it morning, noon and night. I’d have it with breakfast. I’d have it at lunch. I’d have it with dinner. When I saw the contest, I thought, ‘This is the irony of ironies if I do this contest.’ ”

Diet sodas may not be calorie-packed with sugar, but studies have linked overconsumption of the beverages to health issues ranging from kidney problems to depression.

Sullivan’s children, Caeley, Elijah and Timothy, took the message of their video seriously and urged him to cut back.

“What I do now is I drink water throughout the day,” Sullivan said. “I fill up a gallon container. If I can drink the whole gallon of water throughout the day, I have one cup of soda for dinner.”

Now, a couple of 2-liter bottles can last a whole week.

Winning entries

The family also has produced winning videos for Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Amazon.com, Southwest Airlines and LegalZoom.

Vanderbilt didn’t sponsor a contest, but it did enter one. The Sullivans helped Vanderbilt win $10,000 — money that was invested in equipment for a medical clinic in Guyana. Sullivan’s wife, Dr. Christie Sullivan, is a physician.

The Southwest Airlines contest was the first he entered.

“We won a trip to Disney World for my whole family, all expenses paid,” he said. “I started looking for other video contests, and this thing just escalated.”

Music background

Sullivan has used his winnings to invest in better video equipment. A trademark of his videos is an original rap or ditty. He once had aspirations of being a rock star.

“A number of years ago, back in the ’90s, we had a band,” he said. “I got signed to a European label and put out one album. I think maybe five people in Czechoslovakia bought it, and that was about it.”

Now, he’s contemplating offering his services to businesses.

“It’s just been a fun, creative experience, and we’re looking forward to doing more stuff, hopefully,” Sullivan said.